A time to celebrate! Graduates will receive their degrees in May from three Catholic colleges in central and southern Indiana

Compiled by John Shaughnessy

It’s always a special day in the lives of young adults and all the people who have supported them toward this defining goal in their lives.

Once again this May, college students—and their families, friends and the educators who helped shape and guide them—will celebrate the accomplishment and the journey of earning a college degree.

Here is a glimpse of the graduation ceremonies that will take place at the three Catholic colleges in the archdiocese.

MARIAN UNIVERSITY

Marian University in Indianapolis will award degrees in three commencement ceremonies on the weekend of May 5-7.

During the commencement weekend, 715 students will earn undergraduate degrees, 158 will earn master’s degrees, 13 will earn doctoral degrees in education, 26 will earn doctoral degrees in nursing, and 137 will graduate from the Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Students at Marian’s Ancilla College campus in Plymouth, Ind., will receive their undergraduate degrees during a May 5 ceremony that begins at

5 p.m. in the Ancilla Domini Chapel. The commencement address will be delivered by Regina Emberton, president and chief executive officer of South Bend-Elkhart Regional Partnership. A commencement Mass will be celebrated at 2:30 p.m. on May 5 in the chapel.

Undergraduates at Marian’s Indianapolis campus will receive their degrees during a 1:30 p.m. commencement ceremony on May 6 in the arena/convocation center of Marian’s Indianapolis campus. The commencement speaker will be Joseph Donnelly, U.S. ambassador to the Vatican.

The commencement Mass will be on May 6 at 10 a.m. in the arena/convocation center of Marian’s Indianapolis campus.

Graduate students and medical students will receive their degrees on May 7 during a 10 a.m. ceremony in the arena/convocation center of Marian’s Indianapolis campus. The commencement speaker will be Joe Impicciche, president and chief executive officer of Ascension Health.

Each ceremony and the commencement Mass on May 6 can be viewed on marian.edu/live.

SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS COLLEGE

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in St. Mary-of-the-Woods will celebrate its commencement on May 13 for 300 graduates.

There will be two commencement ceremonies—one for on-campus students receiving their bachelor’s degrees, while the other will be for graduates of Woods Online and master’s degree programs.

Both ceremonies will be in the college’s Hamilton Arena of the Jeanne Knoerle Sports and Recreation Center.

The commencement speakers for both ceremonies are graduating students who were selected by a committee of faculty, staff and a trustee.

The commencement ceremony for on-campus students who are graduating will be at 10 a.m. The commencement speaker will be Sydney McCammon of Sullivan, Ind. She has earned a bachelor of science degree in psychology.

The commencement ceremony for graduates of Woods Online and master’s degree programs will be at 3 p.m. The commencement speaker will be Rebecca Weiner of Nashville, Ind. She has earned a master’s of arts degree in art therapy.

As part of the commencement day, the college will also have a Mass at 1 p.m. in the Church of the Immaculate Conception.

Each ceremony will be livestreamed at smwc.edu.

SAINT MEINRAD SEMINARY AND SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY

Fifty students will earn master’s degrees when Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology in St. Meinrad holds its graduation ceremony on May 13.

The ceremony will be at 11:15 a.m. Central Time in St. Bede Theater on the Saint Meinrad campus.

The commencement speaker is Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre of the Archdiocese of Louisville, Ky.

A commencement Mass for the graduates and their guests will be at 9 a.m. Central Time on May 13 in the Archabbey Church of Our Lady of Einsiedeln. †